A former Deputy Director of the Justice Department Office of Tribal Justice this week called on the Senate to take action on President Barack Obama’s pick to lead the DOJ Tax Division.

Lawrence R. Baca, who worked at the DOJ from 1976 to 2008, wrote in an Indian Country Today column that he can no longer remain silent about Tax Division nominee Mary L. Smith, a Cherokee Nation member, who has been stalled for several months. He said Smith should receive “immediate confirmation,” noting that she would be the highest-ranking American Indian to ever work at the DOJ if she is confirmed.

Mary L. Smith (Chicago Bar)

Smith was first tapped for the post in April 2009, but has languished in the Senate over Republican concerns about her lack of tax law experience. The Senate Judiciary Committee first approved her in June 2009 without any Republican support and her nomination was returned to the White House in December. Obama re-nominated her in January and she was reported out of committee again in February without any backing from Republicans.

“There is no reason to treat any presidential nominee with such disrespect,” said Baca, the national president of the Federal Bar Association. “Surely a nomination of such historic importance should not be allowed to languish. This ‘first’ for Indian country deserves a confirmation vote.”

A Democratic aide said earlier this month that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) would have to file for cloture to cut off debate on her nomination. The aide said the minority leadership is holding up any nominee who is opposed by all Republicans in committee.

But Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said earlier this month that he hadn’t heard any discussion about moving her nomination. The Senate will be on recess next week for the Memorial Day holiday.

Smith is the only Assistant Attorney General nominee who is still waiting for a vote in the Senate.

She was one of three nominees returned to the White House in December and re-nominated in January. One of the nominees, Christopher Schroeder for the Office of Legal Policy, was confirmed last month. The other nominee, Dawn Johnsen for the Office of Legal Counsel, withdrew her nomination last month.

Schroeder was only opposed by a few Republicans in committee. Johnsen — like Smith — didn’t receive any GOP support in committee.

Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, told Main Justice Wednesday that President Barack Obama should consider withdrawing his nominee to lead the Justice Department Tax Division.

Mary L. Smith (Chicago Bar)

Mary L. Smith, who was first tapped for the post in April 2009, has languished in the Senate over Republican concerns about her lack of tax law experience. The Senate Judiciary Committee first approved her in June without any Republican support and her nomination was returned to the White House in December. Obama re-nominated her in January and she was reported out of committee again in February without any backing from Republicans.

The ex-partner at the Schoeman, Updike & Kaufman LLP and former in-house counsel to Tyco International Ltd., the international security products and services conglomerate, is not a tax lawyer or tax law specialist. In February, she started at the DOJ as Senior Counsel to Assistant Attorney General Tony West in the Civil Division, while she waits for the Senate to move on her nomination.

“I think they should bring in a more talented … knowledgeable tax person,” Sessions said.

The DOJ has defended Smith, who served on the Obama DOJ transition team overseeing the Tax Division. They said she has “extensive experience in financial litigation” and would be a “significant asset to the Tax Division.”

“We’ve certainly been working with people in Congress and the White House to try and get her a vote, it’s our hope that we will be able to get her a vote,” Attorney General Eric Holder said in a news conference this week. “We need all of these people — Assistant Attorney Generals. We need U.S. Attorneys confirmed. We need to have judges confirmed. We’ll have a Supreme Court nominee who will be named relatively soon that we’d like to have consideration of that person done as quickly as we can.”

A Democratic aide told Main Justice that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) would have to file for cloture to cut off debate on her nomination. The aide said the minority leadership is holding up any nominee who is opposed by all Republicans in committee.

But Sessions said he hasn’t heard any discussion about moving her nomination.

Smith is the only Assistant Attorney General nominee who is still waiting for a vote in the Senate.

She was one of three nominees returned to the White House in December after waiting months for a vote in the Senate and re-nominated in January. One of the nominees, Christopher Schroeder for the Office of Legal Policy, was confirmed last month. The other nominee, Dawn Johnsen for the Office of Legal Counsel, withdrew her nomination last month.

Schroeder was only opposed by a few Republicans in committee. Johnsen received no GOP support in committee.

Additional reporting by Ryan J. Reilly.

President Obama signaled last night that he does not intend to make recess appointments next week for three top Justice Department nominees who have languished in the Senate since last year.

Dawn Johnsen (Indiana University)

In a statement following the confirmation of 27 nominees last night, the president indicated that he didn’t plan to make recess appointments while Congress is gone for the President’s Day recess next week for Dawn Johnsen for the Office of Legal Counsel, Mary L. Smith for the Tax Division and Christopher Schroeder for the Office of Legal Policy. But he didn’t rule out bypassing Senate confirmation in the future for some nominees.

Mary L. Smith (Schoeman, Updike & Kaufman)

“While this is a good first step, there are still dozens of nominees on hold who deserve a similar vote, and I will be looking for action from the Senate when it returns from recess,” Obama said. “If they do not act, I reserve the right to use my recess appointment authority in the future.”

A recess appointment lasts until the end of the next congressional session. Recess appointments are done infrequently, because they usurp the Senate’s constitutional role, angering many senators. During his tenure President George W. Bush made a number of recess appointments, spawning objections from Democrats.

Christopher Schroeder (Duke University)

Obama said he was “gratified” that Senate Republicans lifted their holds on nominees that allowed the Senate to confirm three U.S. Attorneys, a DOJ director and 23 other nominees last night before it left Washington for a week-long “state work period.”

The Johnsen, Smith and Schroeder nominations were stalled in the Senate last year for months before they were returned to the White House in December. President Obama renominated them in January.

President Barack Obama told reporters today that he is considering making recess appointments for nominees who are being held up by Republicans in the Senate.

“I respect the Senate’s role to advise and consent, but for months, qualified, non- controversial nominees for critical positions in government, often positions related to our national security, have been held up despite having overwhelming support,” Obama said in an unexpected appearance before the White House press corps.

Dawn Johnsen (Indiana University)

He didn’t say which nominees he may put in office without Senate confirmation during Congress’s recess next week for the Presidents Day holiday. Among the nominations that have stalled are Dawn Johnsen to head the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, Mary L. Smith for the Tax Division and Christopher Schroeder for the Office of Legal Policy. Their nominations languished in the Senate for months last year before they were returned to the White House in December and re-nominated last month.

“If the Senate does not act …, I will consider making several recess appointments during the upcoming recess because we can’t afford to let politics stand in the way of a well functioning government,” Obama said.

Obama made his remarks after meeting with Republican and Democratic congressional leaders Tuesday. He said he urged Senate Republicans to remove their holds on “nominees for critical jobs.”

“Surely we can set aside partisanship and do what’s traditionally been done with these nominations,” the president said.

A recess appointment lasts until the end of a current congressional session. Without Senate confirmation, the appointees must vacate their positions when a session ends. Recess appointments are controversial. President George W. Bush made a handful of recess appointments over the objections of Democrats, including John Bolton in 2005 to be the U.S. representative to the United Nations.

A senator’s hold doesn’t make it impossible for the Senate to consider nominees. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) could file a cloture petition to move a nomination. Cutting off debate on a nomination, however, is a time-consuming process for the Senate and would be difficult for the Democratic majority with the addition of Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) to the Senate. Brown became the 41st member of the Republican Senate conference last week, ending the Democrats’ filibuster-proof majority.

Reid said on the Senate floor last week that the president might have to start considering recess appointments.

Richard Shelby (Getty Images)

Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama has withdrawn most of his “holds” on presidential nominees, including President Obama’s picks for key Justice Department posts.

Shelby’s office announced late last night that the senator would drop his “blanket hold” on more than 70 nominees pending on the Senate Executive Calendar. A hold is when a senator — often anonymously — lets it be known he would oppose a unanimous consent request to bring a particular bill or nomination to the Senate floor. Without unanimous consent, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) would have to make a debatable motion to bring the matter to the floor, thus raising the possibility of a filibuster. Senate leaders usually do not even begin that process, recognizing it would be very time-consuming.

The DOJ nominees who were caught up in Shelby’s hold were:

• Mary L. Smith, to be Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division. She was reported out of committee last Thursday.

• Christopher Schroeder, to be Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy. He also was reported out of committee on Thursday.

• John Laub, to be director of the National Institute of Justice. He was reported out of committee on Dec. 3.

• Susan Carbon, to be director of the Office on Violence Against Women. She was reported out of committee on Dec. 3.

• Richard Hartunian, to be U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York. He was reported out of committee on Jan. 28.

• Andre Birotte Jr., to be U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California. He was reported out of committee on Jan. 28.

• Ron Machen, to be U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. He was reported out of committee on Jan. 28.

The Alabama senator had held up the more than 70 nominees since Thursday over concerns he has about a tanker contract that could bring 1,500 jobs to Mobile, Ala., and over funds he is requesting to build an FBI counterterrorism center in his state. Northrop Grumman is vying to win the tanker contract, and if successful, would assemble the planes in Mobile.

A spokesman for Shelby said the Republican had “accomplished” his goal by employing the “blanket hold,” according to Politico.

“The purpose of placing numerous holds was to get the White House’s attention on two issues that are critical to our national security – the Air Force’s aerial refueling tanker acquisition and the FBI’s Terrorist Device Analytical Center (TEDAC). With that accomplished, Sen. Shelby has decided to release his holds on all but a few nominees directly related to the Air Force tanker acquisition until the new Request for Proposal is issued,”  Shelby aide Jonathan Graffeo said in a statement, according to Politico.

Shelby still has holds on the nominations of Terry Yonkers, assistant secretary of the Air Force; Frank Kendall, principal deputy undersecretary of Defense for acquisition, technology, and logistics; and Erin Conaton, undersecretary of the Air Force, Politico said.

Democrats and White House press secretary Robert Gibbs had sharply criticized Shelby for the rare move to hold up all of Obama’s nominees who were waiting for votes in the full Senate. Last week, Gibbs said there likely wouldn’t be a “greater example of silliness throughout the entire year of 2010.”

President Obama’s nominee to lead the Justice Department Tax Division received her first endorsement for the post in 2010 from an American Indian organization.

Mary L. Smith (Schoeman, Updike & Kaufman)

The All Indian Pueblo Council, a group representing 20 Pueblo Indian Nations in the Southwest, announced its support for Tax Division nominee Mary L. Smith, a member of the Cherokee Nation, in a letter to Senate leaders last week. This is the second time the Smith nomination has been before the Senate. She was first nominated early last year, but the full Senate never took up her confirmation.

“Ms. Smith is an accomplished litigator who has the skills to succeed as the head of the Tax Division,” All Indian Pueblo Council chairman Joe A. Garcia wrote in a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and ranking member Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.)

The endorsement letter from the Pueblo council is the first that the Judiciary Committee has received since Smith was renominated last month.

Her nomination languished in the Senate for several months last year before it was returned to the White House on Dec. 24. Obama re-nominated her last month and she was reported out of the Senate Judiciary Committee last week on a party-line vote.

Republican senators have complained that Smith has virtually no tax law experience. Democrats have touted her past litigation work as an in-house counsel at Tyco International and as a DOJ trial attorney. We reported on Saturday that Smith has been appointed to the DOJ Civil Division pending the outcome of her nomination to lead the Tax Division.

The Senate Judiciary Committee received seven letters in support of Smith from American Indian organizations in 2009. If confirmed, Smith would be the first American Indian to serve as an Assistant Attorney General. Read our previous report on the support she has received from American Indians leaders here.

“In addition to her impressive legal credentials, Ms. Smith is also a dedicated member of the Native American community,” Garcia wrote in his letter. “Over her career, she has worked tirelessly to improve the visibility and access of Native Americans in the legal profession and to advance Native American civil rights.”

Richard Shelby (Getty Images)

Seven Justice Department nominees that have been reported out the Senate Judiciary Committee might not receive votes on the Senate floor anytime soon thanks to Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama.

Last night Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said that Shelby had placed a “blanket hold” on all nominations pending on the Senate Executive Calendar, including two Assistant Attorneys General nominees, two would-be directors of DOJ offices and three prospective U.S. Attorneys.

Those nominees are:

• Mary L. Smith, Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division. She was reported out of committee yesterday.

• Christopher Schroeder, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy. He also was reported out of committee yesterday.

• John Laub, Director of the National Institute of Justice. He was reported out of committee on Dec. 3.

• Susan Carbon, Director of the Office on Violence Against Women. She was reported out of committee on Dec. 3.

• Richard Hartunian, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York. He was reported out of committee on Jan. 28.

• Andre Birotte Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California. He was reported out of committee on Jan. 28.

• Ron Machen, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. He was reported out of committee on Jan. 28.

But the Republican’s beef isn’t with the nominees.

The Alabama senator is holding up the nominees over concerns he has about a tanker contract that could bring 1,500 jobs to Mobile, Ala., and over funds he is requesting to build an FBI counterterrorism center in his state, according to The Caucus blog on The New York Times Web site. Northrop Grumman is vying to win the tanker contract, and if successful, would assemble the plans in Mobile.

“Senator Shelby has placed holds on several pending nominees due to unaddressed national security concerns,” Shelby spokesperson Jonathan Graffeo said in a statement, according to The Caucus. “Among his concerns is that nearly 10 years after the U.S. Air Force announced plans to replace the aging tanker fleet, we still do not have a transparent and fair acquisition process to move forward. The Department of Defense must recognize that the draft Request for Proposal needs to be significantly and substantively changed.”

He added: “Senator Shelby is also deeply concerned that the administration will not release the funds already appropriated to the FBI to build the Terrorist Explosives Devices Analytical Center. This decision impedes the U.S. military, the intelligence community, and federal law enforcement personnel in their missions to exploit and analyze intelligence information critical to fighting terrorism and ensuring American security worldwide.”

Shelby would be willing to speak with the Obama administration about his concerns at any time, according to the spokesman.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs condemned Shelby for the rare decision to hold up all of Obama’s nominees who are waiting for votes in the full Senate.

“I guess if you needed one example of what’s wrong with this town, it might be that one senator can hold up 70 qualified individuals to make government work better because he didn’t get his earmarks,” Gibbs told reporters today, according to the blog. “If that’s not the poster child for how this town needs to change the way it works, I fear there won’t be a greater example of silliness throughout the entire year of 2010.”

The Democratic National Committee also posted a video on YouTube yesterday that alleges Shelby’s holds are threatening national security.

The senator’s holds don’t make it impossible for the Senate to consider nominees. Under normal circumstances, Senate leaders honor an individual senator’s hold. But if Majority Leader Reid wants to bring a nomination to the Senate floor, he could file a cloture petition. Cutting off debate on a nomination is a time-consuming process for the Senate and would be difficult for the Democratic majority with the addition of Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) to the Senate. Brown became the 41st member of the Republican Senate caucus yesterday, ending the Democrats’ filibuster-proof majority.

Reid said on the Senate floor yesterday that the president might have to start considering recess appointments, which wouldn’t require confirmation.

“The president will look at all his options,” Gibbs said, according to The Caucus.

The Senate Judiciary Committee endorsed today two top Justice Department nominees whose nominations had languished on the Senate Executive Calendar for much of last year.

However, the panel lost its quorum — and its ability to conduct business — before it could consider the most high-profile nomination, that of Dawn Johnsen to head the Office of Legal Counsel.

At the end of 2009, the Senate returned all three nominations to the White House. President Obama promptly renominated them in January.

Mary L. Smith (Schoeman, Updike & Kaufman)

The panel today voted to report out of committee Tax Division nominee Mary L. Smith by a 12-7 vote. The committee endorsed Office of Legal Policy nominee Christopher Schroeder by a 16-3 vote.

As they did in her first committee vote last June, Republicans unanimously voted against sending Smith’s nomination to be Assistant Attorney General to the Senate floor. Republican senators have complained that Smith has virtually no tax law experience. The committee initially approved her last June 11 on a party line vote of 12-7.

“The Assistant Attorney General is not the kind of position that you probably would want someone learning on the job,” Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said at the committee meeting today.

Democrats defended Smith, noting her past work as an in-house counsel at Tyco International and as a DOJ trial attorney.

“She has more litigation, management and Justice Department experience than previous Tax Division nominees,” said Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin. He added that litigation is the “bread and butter” of the Tax Division.

Christopher Schroeder (Duke University)

On Schroeder’s nomination to be Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Office of Legal Policy, the Republican vote was split, with only Jon Kyl (Ariz.), John Cornyn (Texas), and Tom Coburn (Okla.) voting against Schroeder, who would be vetting judicial nominations if he is confirmed.

Schroeder, a Duke University law professor, has been a critic of President George W. Bush’s national security policies, which is a source of concern for some Republicans. The panel first reported him out of committee by voice vote on July 28, 2009.

“I find it very troubling that someone with those views would be vetting the judges nominated by the president,” Kyl said.

Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), the panel’s ranking Republican, said Schroeder, a former chief counsel on the committee to then-Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), said the professor is a “strong partisan.” But the Republican senator said Schroeder’s views shouldn’t disqualify him from leading the Office of Legal Policy, because the office “has some political component to it.”

“The nominee is smart and capable,” Sessions said.

The panel also held over several judicial nominations and DOJ Bureau of Justice Statistics nominee James P. Lynch. The committee will consider Lynch and Johnsen at its meeting next Thursday.

“I must admit I am troubled by the number of nominations that get held,” panel Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) complained. “Vote them up, or vote them down.”

This report was updated at 2:02 p.m.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will consider President Obama’s pick to lead the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics at its meeting Thursday, according to the panel’s Web site.

James P. Lynch (City University of New York)

BJS nominee James P. Lynch was tapped for the post on Oct. 29. He is a criminal justice professor at John Jay College at the City University of New York. He also serves as the American Society of Criminology’s vice president-elect.

Lynch told panel members at a confirmation hearing last month that he would ensure that the statistical body was independent and free from political manipulation. He sat on a National Research Council panel that recommended last July that the BJS become independent of the Office of Justice Programs in the DOJ hierarchy to avoid political pressures. Read the National Research Council report, which was sponsored by the DOJ, here.

Read more about Lynch here and read information the committee received about him here.

If confirmed, he would replace acting director Michael Sinclair. Lynch would be the first presidentially appointed bureau director since Jeffrey Sedgwick resigned in 2008 to lead the Office of Justice Programs.

The panel is also scheduled to vote on DOJ nominees Dawn Johnsen (to head the Office of Legal Counsel), Mary L. Smith (to lead the Tax Division) and Christopher Schroeder (to head the Office of Legal Policy) during its business meeting tomorrow. Their nominations were held over from last week.

Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, has promoted one of his counsels to lead the GOP oversight of nominations considered by the panel, his office announced today.

Republican counsel Danielle Cutrona, who has worked on the committee staff since March 2008, will direct the minority’s reviews of Justice Department and judicial nominees.

“I’m delighted to announce this well-deserved promotion for Danielle,” Sessions said in a statement. “Her hard work for the Committee over the past several months has been an invaluable asset, and I know that she will continue to excel in this new role. I look forward to working with her on the many important nominations in the Judiciary Committee that we’ll be considering this year.”

Among those nominations are more than dozen DOJ nominees, including Dawn Johnsen (to head the Office of Legal Counsel), Mary L. Smith (to lead the Tax Division) and Christopher Schroeder (to head the Office of Legal Policy).